David Cook

Plasma gouging, although not necessarily as well-known as plasma cutting, is one of four methods of gouging that can be used for a variety of industrial applications. Different techniques bring about different results, depending on the application.

Your car engine's water-cooling system has a lot in common with the cooling system in your plasma cutter: Both use water and coolant, a pump, cooling hoses, and a heat exchanger to remove energy from a heat source.

A trained plasma technician can tell a lot about the health of a plasma system if he learns how to inspect the electrode, understands normal wear patterns, and knows how to spot signs of trouble. This article shows the difference between good and bad wear in air and oxygen plasma systems.

The evolution of high power dry plasma technology and other cutting methods, such as conventional dual gas PAC, water injection PAC, high precision PAC, and laser for metal fabrication. Variables such as, process speed, cut quality, productivity, and cost per foot are discussed in detail.